News on the Neck wrote about HLLI’s federal class-action lawsuit challenging Virginia’s Fair Housing Law, arguing that it unlawfully forces landlords to submit to warrantless inspections of their property, records, and electronic devices.
The lawsuit, filed by The Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, targets provisions of Virginia’s Fair Housing Law that prohibit landlords from refusing tenants based solely on how they pay rent, including through federal housing vouchers.
The plaintiffs say the law goes beyond preventing discrimination and instead compels private property owners to take part in a federal program they say carries additional administrative requirements, inspections and contractual obligations.
“Section 8 is voluntary, and Virginia cannot use housing law to coerce warrantless searches,” said Ted Frank, the institute’s cofounder and director of litigation.
Read more at News on the Neck.